Stop switch for collating machines



Dec. 27, 1932. H. v. ASHBY STOP SWITCH FOR COLLATING MACHINES Original Filed Sept. '15. 1927 5 Sheets-Sheet Dec. 27, 1932. v ASHBY 1,892,033

STOP S WITCH FOR COLLATING MACHINES Original Filed Sept. 13. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. 27, 1932. H.V. ASHBY STOP SWITCH FOR COLLATING MACHINES Original Filed Sept. 13. 192'? 3 Sheets -Sheet 5 ff Bax add/2 22f 6 7201? Patented Dec. 27, 1932 UNITED STATES HARRY V. ASHBY, F ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA STOP SWITCH FOB, COLLATING- MACHINES Application filed September 13, 1927, Serial No. 219,346. Renewed May 14, 1932.

This invention relates to stop switches for collating machines and more particularly to such devices adapted to stop the machine when for any reason the collating devices fail to function properly.

Collating machines are used when it is desired to assemble one of each of several different printed sheets, as is necessary in making books, pamphlets, catalogues or the like.

' When the individual sheets are printed they are delivered from the printing press in piles in which the sheets thereof are all identical. The collating machine is therefore supplied with one pile containing copies of the first sheet, a second pile containing copies of the second sheet, and so on. The collating machine will then select a single sheet from each pile and deliver the sheets finally in groups containing one sheet of each kind.

In this process, if a single sheet fails to be taken from its pile, even though the other sheets are all delivered, the resulting booklet or the like is ruined. My invention therefore, is directed to insuring that the machine is stopped whenever this occurs, so that the machine can be adjusted, preventing waste of the product.

It is the principal aim of the present invention to provide a stop switch for collating machines which will automatically stop the machine whenever any of the collating de' vices fail to lift a sheet.

Another aim of the present invention is to provide a stop switch for collating machines which will be inexpensive to manufacture, simple in construction and eficient in operation.

Other objects and features of novelty will 40 be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the following drawings in which;

Figure 1 is an elevation of a collatingmachine to which the invention is applied;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing a portion of the structure shown in Figure 1, in greater detail;

Figure 8 is a vertical longitudinal section through one of the piles of sheets being collated;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of one of w the collating devices, showing my invention applied thereto; and

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of the electrical connections for the stop switch.

A collating machine to which my invention may be applied is fully shown and described in my prior patent for collating devices, No. 1,575,893, patented March 9, 1926. While portions of that particular machine have been illustrated herein and my prior patent is hereby referred to for details of construction of a particular collating machine, it is to be understood that my invention is not limited to this particular type, but may be employed in connection with any collating machine and that the invention is limited only by thescope of the subsequent claims.

Referring more particularly to the drawings for a detailed description of one embodiment of my invention, a collating machine to which my invention may be applied is shown in Figure 1. This machine is illustrated as provided with mechanism for collating from only two piles of sheets, as 7 two piles will illustrate the operation of the machine, but of course, a larger number of piles will often be used in practice.

As shown in Figure 8, these piles are each supported by a table 10. A sheet guide 11 provided at the front of each table 10. Suction devices 12 are employed to separate the top sheet from the pile, lift it over the guide 11, move the sheet forward clear thereof and release it, permitting the sheet to 5 drop on moving tapes 51 operating below the tables, and which serve to deliver the sheets in groups to a suitable receptacle 52 at the delivery end of the machine.

The suction devices 12 are carried by bars 13, one of which is provided for each pile of sheets. Each bar 13 is provided at each end with a carriage 14, each carriage having a pair of rollers 15 which move vertically within the guides 16. The guides 16 are rigidly secured to a longitudinal bar 17 mounted for reciprocation along the length of the machine. A depending arm 18 of each bar 17 is provided with linkworlr 19'which is cam operated to produce the desired motion. The drive of the machine is fully disclosed in my prior patent and need not be described in the present a'pplicati on. r

Referring to Figure 2, the bottom roller 15 normally rides on the top of the frame member 20. At the end of its travel toward the sheet pile the roller15 drops through a slot 21 in the member 20, so that the suction members 12 may engage the top sheet of the pile. The depending arm 22 connected to the carriage 14 is acted on by bell crank 23 and the reciprocating bar 24, both of which move in timed relation to the operation 0 the machine,and raise the carriage so that the suction members 12 may lift the sheet. The bar 24 is actuated by a lever 25 which is in turn cam operated by the drive of the machine as disclosed in my prior patent hereinbefore referred to.

The machine is so timed that after the suction devices 12 have separated the top sheet of the pile and then moved upwardun'der the influence of the bell crank 23 to clear the top of the guides 11, the bar 17 is moved away from the pile. The guides 16 through the rollers 15. carriage 14 and bar 13 all of which move with the bar 17 will move the suction devices 12 forward so that the rear. end of the lifted sheet rides clear of the guide 11. The valve 26 will then operate as described in my prior patent to release the suction and permit the sheet to drop on the moving tapes.

The foregoing description refers to the collating machine of my prior patent. How-, ever, with this former machine, if any one of the suction devices should fail to feed a sheet, even though all of the other devices were functioning properly, the pamphlet or book being constructed would be ruined. The present invention is therefore directed to stopping the machine in case any one of the suction devices fails to lift a sheet.

Mounted on each bar 13 is a block 30 of insulating material which is vertically bored to receive a stem 31, carrying a plunger 32 at the lower end thereof. Rigidly secured to the top of the stem 31 is a laterally extending blade 33. The stem is loosely mounted on the block 30 and is free to drop by its own weight except as limited by the: blade 33, its upward movement being limited by the base 34 of the plunger. A small plate 35 is secured to the block 30 in such a manner that the blade. 33 contacts therewith whenever the plunger drops. This plate extends rearwardly to con nect with the bar 13.

Each blade 33 is connected by a flexible coil 46 to the metal armor 47 of the flexible suction tube 48, which supplies the suction to the suction devices 12. The other end of the armor 47 is in turn grounded as at 49 (Fig. 3) to the stationary suction pipe which terminates in an insulating bushing 54, as shown in Fig. 3. A wire connects the pipe 50 above the insulation with the return to the battery 43.

Mounted on the frame member 20 is a base member 36 which is insulated from the frame by a piece of non-conducting material 37 Current is supplied to this base member 36 by an insulated wire 53. The base member 36 supports an upwardly extending resilient metal rod 38 which is rolled over on itself at its upper end, constituting a wiper 39.

The wiper 39 is'located in the path of a block of insulation 40 carried by the bar 17.

f The block 40 supports a contact member 41, connected'to the bar 17, and thereby elec-' trically connected to the plate 35 through the carriage 14, rollers 15 and guide 16. The block 40 and the contact member 41 are so designed that on the stroke of the bar 17 toward the sheet pile the wiper 39 contacts with the insulation 40, is bent down, and springs clear of the contact lug 41. On the stroke of the bar 17 away from the sheet pile when the suction devices 12 are carrying a sheet, the contact member 41bears against the wiper 39, causing an electrical contact and at the same time deflecting the wiper 39 downwardly so that the lug rides over it. The wiper then springs back to the normal position which it occupies during the remainder of the feeding stroke. 7 p a The operation of the stop switch will be more readily understood by an inspection of Fig. 5. The plates 35 and the blades 33 of the stop switch for each sheet pile are wired in parallel. This parallel group is in series with the wiper switch 39, 40. A relay 42 and a battery or other source of electrical power 43 are also in series with the wiper switch and the parallelgroup of stop switches. The relay 42 may be so connected in any known or desired manner with the wiring of the drive motor to effect the stopping of the motor when the relay'42 is operated.

One arrangement shown in Fig. 5 is to have the relay connected to the starting box holding coil circuit as shown at 44. With this arrangement an instantaneous operation of the relay 42 will interrupt the circuit in the holding coil 44, permitting the starting rheostat handle 45 to stop the motor. When the collating machine is running properly, the lifting of a sheet by the suction pads will retain theplunger 31 in its elevated position, as the foot 32 will ride on the lifted sheet until it is delivered. When the sheet is delivered, the foot 32 will drop and the blade 33 will contact with the plate 35. How ever, no current will flow in the circuit as the wiper 39 is not in contact with the lug 41,

' and will not contact on the return stroke toward the sheet feeding pile, as the insulation 40 will spring the wiper 39 under the contact lug 41 without completing the circuit. However, on the feeding stroke the contact lug 41 rides against the wiper 39 causing an effectual contact. If, at this point in the cycle of operation there is no sheet being carried by the suction devices 12, the foot 32 will not be raised but the stem 31 will be in its low ered position with the blade 33 contacting with the plate 35. The circuit is then completed through the relay 42, which will operate to interrupt the other circuit which is effectively wired to stop the drive motor when the relay is operated.

It should be noted that as the stop switches associated with each sheet pile are all wired in parallel, the failure to feed a sheet by any one of the suction devices will permit contact between the associated blade 33 and plate 35, completing the relay circuit. Thus the machine will be stopped whenever any one of the suction devices fails to lift a sheet.

The breadth of the invention is limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is: i

1. In combination with a sheet manipulating machine comprising a moving carriage having mechanism thereon adapted to take a sheet singly from a pile, move the sheet, and release it, a device mounted on said cariage and adapted to make an electrical contact which will operate to stop the machine, and other means for completing the circuit through said contact at one point only in the cycle of the sheet manipulating machine.

2. In combination with a sheet manipulating machine comprising a moving carriage having mechanism thereon adapted to take a sheet singly from a pile, move the sheet, and release it, a plunger slidably carried by said carriage means for raising said plunger when said mechanism takes a sheet, said plunger adapted to be maintained in raised position by the lifted sheet, an element on said carriage adapted to make an electrical contact with the plunger, and means fixed on the frame of the machine adapted to contact with an electrode on said carriage to complete a circuit through said first mentioned contact to stop the drive of the machine whenever said mechanism fails to take a sheet.

3. In combination with a collating machine comprising a plurality of carriages moving in unison and each having mechanism there on adapted to take a sheet singly from its associated pile, move the sheet and release it,

a stop switch comprising a slidable plunger carried by each carriage and adapted to make electrical contact whenever any of said mechanisms fail to take a sheet, and an electrode mounted for movement in unison with said carriages, and a yieldably mounted electrode in its path adapted to complete a circuit through said plunger contact and associated with a relay for stopping the drive of the machine. 7

t. In combination with mechanism for feeding sheets singly from a pile, means for stopping the machine whenever said mecha nism fails to take a sheet, said means includ ing a pair of electric contact members, both disposed upon the same side of a sheet being fed, one of said members being adapted to be moved by engagement with that surface of said sheet which is nearer said contact members, whereby automatic stoppage of said device during feeding of a sheet is prevented.

5. The combination with a collating ma chine having a plurality of carriages moving in unison and each having mechanism thereon adapted to take a sheet, move the sheet and release it, of means for automatically stopping the machine and a separate means associated with each of said mechanisms for preparing said automatic stopping means for actuation whenever any one of said plurality of mechanisms fails to take a sheet.

6. The combination with a collating machine having a plurality of carriages moving in unison and each having mechanism thereon adapted to take a sheet singly from its associated pile, move the sheet and release it, a switch associated with each mechanism adapted to close whenever its mechanism fails to take a sheet, said switches being electrically connected in parallel, a second switch connected in series with said parallel group and adapted to close once for each operation of the machine, and a relay in series with said second switch for controlling the drive of the machine.

7. In combination with a sheet manipulating machine comprising a movable carriage and a suction device carried thereby, means for operating said carriage and suction device to lift a sheet singly from a pile, move the sl eet and release it, a gravity actuated member mounted on said carriage means for raising said member against the force of gravity when said device takes a sheet, said member being disposed in position to be held in raised position by the sheet when the sheet is lifted, whereby said member is supported in transit solely by said sheet automatic stopping means for the machine, and means cooperating with said member for preparing said stopping means for operation, whenever the suction device fails to lift a sheet.

8. In combination with a sheet manipulating machine comprising a moving carriage having mechanism thereon adapted to pick up a sheet, transport the sheet and'release it, a member yieldingly carried by said carriage, means whereby said member is raised relatively to said pick-up mechanism, said member being supported in raised position solely by said sheet during. the sheet transporting movement, means for stopping said machine, and means on said carriage for cooperating with said member to prepare said stopping means for actuation, Whenever said mechanism fails to pick up a sheet.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aifix my signature. I r

' HARRY V. ASHBY. 

